CHAPTER 8 ___________________________ The Principles of Design

The Principles of Design Balance Emphasis and Focal Point Scale and Proportion Repetition and Rhythm Unity and Variety

Balance Symmetrical Balance Asymmetrical Balance Radial Balance Absolute Symmetry Bilateral Symmetry Asymmetrical Balance Radial Balance

Symmetrical Balance Symmetry is strongly tied to balance, and symmetrical images are thought to be in balance. When each side is exactly the same, we have absolute symmetry. When there are minor discrepancies between one side or another, but the overall effect is still one of symmetry, we have bilateral symmetry.

Taj Mahal, Agra, India, Mughal period, c. 1632-48

This building does not have a balanced design – it is asymmetrical This building does not have a balanced design – it is asymmetrical. Although it is structurally stable and well-built, it visually appears to be the opposite. Balance is not necessary to create a “good” design, however. This building, while it sacrifices implied stability, does appear playful and unique.

Most faces show bilateral symmetry Most faces show bilateral symmetry. We view the face overall as symmetrical, despite minor variances.

If we scrutinize the face, it becomes apparent that there are indeed diversions in the symmetry.

The image on the left is her actual face. It has bilateral symmetry The image on the left is her actual face. It has bilateral symmetry. The image in the middle shows an image that is manipulated to show the absolute symmetry of her left side. The image on the right shows the absolute symmetry of her right side.

Enguerrand Quarton, Coronation of the Virgin, 1453-54 Enguerrand Quarton, Coronation of the Virgin, 1453-54. This work uses bilateral symmetry. Even though the symmetry is not absolute, it still gives a sense of balance and harmony to the image.

Asymmetrical Balance Balance can be achieved even when the two sides of a composition lack symmetry, if they seem to possess the same visual weight. When this happens, there is asymmetrical balance.

Johannes Vermeer, Woman Holding a Balance, c. 1664 Johannes Vermeer, Woman Holding a Balance, c. 1664. The areas of light and dark balance each side of the design. The subject matter is balanced between the spiritual and material worlds.

If we manipulate the image, it no longer has a sense of balance If we manipulate the image, it no longer has a sense of balance. The darkness has far more visual weight now than the light does, and it seems more overwhelming.

Childe Hassam, Boston Common at Twilight, 1885-86 Childe Hassam, Boston Common at Twilight, 1885-86. The visual weight is heavier on the left side of the composition, where the busy street activity is.

Radial Balance With radial balance, everything radiates out from a central point. Radial balance is very familiar in nature, and it commonly possesses spiritual and religious significance.

Rose Window, south transept, Chartres Cathedral, c. 1215

Emphasis and Focal Point Emphasis is used by artists to draw the viewer’s attention to one area of the work. This area is the focal point of the composition. It is easy to find the focal point of a radially balanced composition; it is always the center. Emphasis can also be established by creating strong contrasts of light and color, or by the organized implied lines of linear perspective.

Where is the focal point?

Anna Vallayer-Coster, Still Life with Lobster, 1781 Anna Vallayer-Coster, Still Life with Lobster, 1781. By using a complimentary color scheme, the red lobster becomes a strong focal point, with the red vibrating against the green tones of the background. (This is also achieved by the color’s intensity – the red is far more intense than the dull greens of the background, and so it stands out visually.)

Where is the focal point?

Georges de la Tour, Joseph the Carpenter, c. 1645 Georges de la Tour, Joseph the Carpenter, c. 1645. Rather than by the use of color contrast, this composition emphasizes the focal point by contrasts in value. The bright light on the child’s face contrasts sharply with the dark surroundings, and draws our eye in to look at it.

Where is the focal point?

Anselm Kiefer, Parsifal I, 1973 Anselm Kiefer, Parsifal I, 1973. The white crib becomes the focal point through a contrast of light. The brightness of the crib contrasts against the darker areas of the print.

Where is the focal point?

Leonardo da Vinci, The Last Supper (replica in restored version) Leonardo da Vinci, The Last Supper (replica in restored version). The focal point is at the center of the composition, right at Jesus’s head. The artist establishes this with the use of linear perspective, by placing the vanishing point at Jesus’s head.

Where is the focal point?

Larry Poons, Orange Crush, 1963 Larry Poons, Orange Crush, 1963. This work is afocal – there is no one point where your eye wanders comfortably to rest. It bounces around the composition, always in motion.

Scale and Proportion Scale is the word we use to describe the dimensions of an art object in relation to the original object that is depicts or in relation to the objects around it. There is “small-scale” and “large-scale” work. Proportion refers to the relationship between the parts of an object and the whole, or the relationship between an object and its surroundings.

Claes oldenburg and Coosje van Bruggen, Spoonbridge and Cherry, 1895-1988.

Do-Ho Suh Public Figures October 1998-May 1999 Do-Ho Suh Public Figures October 1998-May 1999. Note the relationship between the scale of the monument, and the scale of the figures holding it up. This plays with our expected sense of proportions.

Polyclitus, Doryphoros, 450 BCE Polyclitus, Doryphoros, 450 BCE. Polyclitus defined beauty as a function of proper proportion. He demonstrated the “perfect body” through mathematical proportion. The head is one eighth of the body’s height, and the shoulder breadth is one fourth of the total height of the body.

Doryphoros, detail. Even within the face, mathematically determined proportion indicated balance and beauty. Notice the symmetry of the face, and consider how we are still affected by these standards several thousands of years later.

Repetition and Rhythm Repetition often implies monotony. When we see the same thing over and over again, it can get boring. However, when the same or similar elements repeat themselves, such as shapes, colors, or a regular pattern, a visual rhythm will result. Rhythm demonstrates that repetition is not necessarily boring. It indicates a movement through repetition.

Auguste Rodin, Gates of Hell with Adam and Eve, 1880-1917 Auguste Rodin, Gates of Hell with Adam and Eve, 1880-1917. The three Shades sit on top of the door.

Auguste Rodin, The Three Shades, 1881-86 Auguste Rodin, The Three Shades, 1881-86. Each figure is exactly the same – they are cast copies of the same pose repeated. However, by setting them at different angles, the artist exposes a wide array of visual differences. This begins to form a visual rhythm – the bodies show movement and variety through the repetition.

The shapes of the windows, as well as the curves of the building, are similar and repetitive. However, they repeat with slight changes, which keeps the eye moving around it. If the windows were perfectly in order, in exact rows, we would not need to spend as much time visually studying it to figure out the relationships – we would immediately recognize that the pattern is the same, and possibly lose interest faster.

Laylah Ali, Untitled, 2000.

Unity and Variety When all visual elements are in agreement, the artwork has unity. No individual part is valued more than another. Variety shows us different aspects to the composition, and breaks the potential for visual monotony within unity. A good work of art must generally have both unity and variety, and it is the artist’s job to find a balance between the two.

Auguste Rodin, The Three Shades, 1881-86.

Tensions within Unity and Variety In the twentieth century, artists have become increasingly interested in embracing and exploiting the tensions between unity and variety. It is this sense of disjunction, the sense that the parts can never form a unified whole, that we have come to identify with what is commonly called postmodernism.

Frank Gehry and Vlado Milunić, The Rasin Building, or The Dancing House, 1992-96.